Libya: 250 Nigerians repatriated weekly –FG

Following recent developments in Libya, the Federal Government, disclosed yesterday it repatriates 250 Nigerians from that country every week.

This was even as government said 3,000 Nigerians have, so far been repatriated from Libya.

Charge d’Affaires of Nigeria in Libya, Mr Illiya Danladi Fachano, gave the breakdown when he addressed the Charly Boy-led group, OurMumuDonDo, who converged on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Abuja, yesterday, to urge government to act quickly and save Nigerians trapped in Libya.

I am the Charge d’Affaires. In other words, the Nigerian Head of Mission to Libya. I exist there to serve the interest of Nigerians. I am here by this opportunity you have created to tell you that the mission repatriates migrant Nigerians, every week, 250,” Fachano said.

The protest my OurMumuDonDo was necessitated by alleged sale of Nigerian migrants travelling through Libya, to Europe, for $400, including other inhuman acts.

Fachano was invited by Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, for consultations on Nigerian migrants in Libya.

Fachano further said today, 250 Nigerian migrants would return to the country. He said they will arrive the country by 7:00pm. Fachano added that the unfortunate truth is that even Nigerians also sold their compatriots. He confirmed CNN’s video to be real, and that some of the streets shown on the video are the same “street that I follow to my office. Yeah! There is an element of truth in it. Why am I saying there is element of truth? Even Nigerians themselves in Libya, who go to Libya, also buy and sell. When you buy somebody as a commodity, you detect the type and the price.

“Correct! They do! So, this is what is not known to the public. Why is the practise going on? It is a condemnable practise. It is because there is no effective government. It is something that the rest of the world should help the Libyans to come and have a centrally-agreed government.”

On what the embassy has been doing, Fachano said the mission usually visits detention camps, where illegal Nigerian migrants are detained, every week. He added that other nationalities, such as Ghanaians and Gambians, were also detained at the camps, and that the mission visits the camps to identify Nigerian citizens and get them registered. Fachano stated that so far, about 2,000 Nigerians have been registered, even as he said that they were being conveyed to Nigeria in a batch of 250.

Speaking earlier, Oputa said he was saddened because Nigeria is a country that offered so little in spite of its abundant human and natural resources.

He added that it was a sad day because President Muhammadu Buhari had not shown leadership, declaring that the giant of Africa suddenly became the rat of Africa.

“It is a shame. I am here in solidarity with my comrades, my children, my grandchildren and this is the life I have chosen from henceforth to live, to be that facilitating factor, to be the ginger, to encourage young, exceptional Nigerian youths, for them to know, for them to finally realise that the future of this country lies in their hands and unless they are proactive, unless they take charge of their future, they won’t have a future in this country,” Oputa said.